The LEGO Friends Press Release is now out. According to it, the theme will be released January 2012. Below is also a picture comparing the Friends Figures with a standard LEGO Minifigure. They also sent me a couple of pictures showcasing some of the sets, but I think we've all seen them already.

LEGO GROUP DECLARES NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION FOR 2012: DELIVER MEANINGFUL PLAY EXPERIENCES TO GIRLS WORLDWIDE WITH NEW LEGO® FRIENDS

Company brings classic construction play to the girls’ aisle with first-of- its-kind LEGO® mini-doll figure, three new brick colors and detailed interiors that reflect four years of research in play needs of girls

BILLUND, Denmark (December 19, 2011) – The LEGO Group, the world’s leading construction toy brand, today announced LEGO® Friends, a new play theme that tailors the iconic LEGO construction experience especially to girls ages five and up. LEGO Friends delivers on a girl’s desire for realistic role-play, creativity, and a highly-detailed, character-based world with the core values of LEGO building.

The LEGO Friends collection of 23 products ranges in price from $5.99 to $99.99 USD and the first 14 will be available for sale in select toy, discount merchandise, specialty and online stores beginning December 26, 2011 in the United Kingdom and January 1, 2012 in the United States. A rolling International launch will follow in the spring, with the remaining nine sets launching in the summer months.

“We felt it was time to test assumptions that girls aren’t interested in building and to breathe fresh air into a toy category filled mostly with pre-fabricated play experiences for girls,” said Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, CEO, LEGO Group. “We focused on creating a play experience centered on the joy of creation, while heeding the way girls naturally build and play. We are incredibly proud of the solution we deliver with LEGO Friends, and are resolved to build this platform for years to come.”

LEGO Friends is the first 100 percent LEGO building experience fully optimized to girls’ tastes and interests. Thousands of girls and their mothers worldwide participated in intensive research that validated the desire for more beauty, realistic details, accessories and interior building and role play opportunities in a LEGO offering.

Introducing the LEGO mini-doll figure Anchored by the introduction of a new mini-doll figure, LEGO Friends introduces a new LEGO minifigure platform tailored to girls’ requests for a more realistic, relatable and stylized figure. Designed to the same scale of the classic LEGO minifigure, the mini-doll figure stands roughly 5 millimeters taller than its minifigure sibling, yet features similar constructability, shares the iconic “claw” hand to hold the same accessories, can wear the same hair and headpieces, and is compatible with all LEGO building sets. A total of 29 different mini-doll figures will be introduced in 2012.

“LEGO Friends is one of the most researched LEGO projects ever and is a culmination of years of anthropological research with girls around the world to understand what they expect from a construction toy,” said Nanna Ulrich Gudum, senior creative director, LEGO Group. “In talking with girls and their moms, we understand that girls really want a LEGO offering that mirrors what the boys experience, but in a way that fulfills their unique desire for remodeling and redesign, combined with realistic themes in community and friendship.”

“Unlike previous LEGO toys for girls, LEGO Friends, at its core, does not apologize for being a construction toy and delivers, for the first time, a building experience in the same scale as our classic offerings,” Nanna Ulrich Gudum continued. “What LEGO Friends does differently is deliver the beauty, details, accessories, real world themes and need for strong interior play that the research revealed would make all the difference for girls ages 5 and up.”

Welcome to Heartlake City The LEGO Friends story centers on the everyday lives and personalities of five girls in a fictional hometown called Heartlake City. Each of the friends—Olivia, Mia, Andrea, Stephanie and Emma—has a distinct personality and interests, such as animals, performing arts, invention and design, that are reflected in the models. Building sets reflect different parts of town where the girls’ adventures take place—downtown, suburbs, beach, camping grounds and mountains.

The product collection Half of the launch collection includes construction sets themed to introduce girls to each of the “Friend’s” personalities, including: Stephanie’s Outdoor Bakery, Emma’s Splash Pool, Andrea’s Stage, Olivia’s Inventor’s Workshop, Stephanie’s Pet Patrol, Mia’s Puppy House and Emma’s Design Studio. Girls are also invited to construct the Friends’ favorite locations in Heartlake City with larger building sets, including: Stephanie’s Cool Convertible, Olivia’s Tree House, Heartlake Dog Show, Butterfly Beauty Shop, City Park Café, Heartlake Vet, and Olivia’s House. The remaining nine sets launching later in the year deliver the same range in price and theme.

Immersive brand experience

Children will be immersed in the new world they can create with LEGO Friends through a variety of brand experiences planned for 2012. In addition to providing product information, the LEGO Friends website will allow children to explore the personalities of each of the five Friends and the different spots in Heartlake City. The site will also feature an avatar creator, mini-movies, games, video building tips, story extensions, contests, news and an events calendar. Also planned are Interactive building events and road shows, promotions, magazines, digital content, a mini movie, in-store experiences, books and more. Check www.LEGOFriends.com for more information.

I realize I may be in the minority here, but this is my 2 cents on these things.

Despite their "interchangeability" with REAL minifigs, I can't help wondering when the heck Lego will recognize that girls ACTUALLY LIKE girl minifigs and they don't have to make these crappy contrived versions. Let's all reflect on Juniors, Belleville, and now Friends and agree that it's just not good. I LOVE THE SETS, just not the figs. I can tell you that after dealing with hundreds if not thousands of girls over the years in the Lego business, they just want something that is like their brothers or fathers Legos and can be the same. At least the hair and accessories work on them but seriously, quit trying to reinvent the wheel, standard minifigs work, girls like them (JUST LOOK AT THE SERIES FIGS), so stick with them. PLEASE!!!!!

I would really like to see their legs move independently of each other. These poor girls are going to have to hop everywhere. I like the sets as I've said before and the figs have grown on me-but I hate that they lose that point of articulation. They can lay down, sit or stand up. No silly dances. No roundhouse kicks. No grand jetes.

Controversy brewing over LEGO friends? I don't know exactly how I feel about the article. Some good points being made, but I think this parent is going WAY overboard in encouraging the child to play with whatever they want. I feel kinda creeped out by this parents take...anyone else?

pumbaugh wrote:Controversy brewing over LEGO friends? I don't know exactly how I feel about the article. Some good points being made, but I think this parent is going WAY overboard in encouraging the child to play with whatever they want. I feel kinda creeped out by this parents take...anyone else?

My daughter loved the sneak preview pics, so I'm sure we'll be getting a few of these over the course of next year. That said, she also loved playing with Space Police Central, the Alien Conquest sets that I have, and Titanium Command Rig. We even had an ongoing storyline involving Alien Conquest, Pharaoh's Quest and Atlantis, where the humans were all trying to get the treasures and the mummies and Atlanteans were just trying to protect their stuff. They resorted to calling in the aliens from AC to get the treasures back. After a while, though, my daughter decided that they realized it was all just a big misunderstanding and they all became friends and had a picnic.

So, I guess I'm saying the name makes sense, at least. I think the figures look great, the sets look really well-designed and fully-featured, and I'm also encouraged that the hair pieces and accessories are interchangeable with standard minifigs.

I must admit that despite my earlier feelings and statements, I am falling in love with these sets. Having sold a BOATLOAD of them it gets me excited and all the reports back are very very positive. After getting my hands dirty on these I can now say that while I may not love the mini-doll in and of itself, the series is incredibly appealing and even has a large amount of elements that boys (YES BOYS and dare I say men) can appreciate for their MOC's and such. I think this may finally be the winning girl series we've been waiting for. Is it perfect? Nope, no theme ever has been, but it's really good so far. I can honestly say I can't wait for the spring releases.

We could have some of these up on a runway, modeling fashions while we have a bunch of regular minifig girls with pies and icream cones sitting in the audience complaining that they set unrealistic body goals.